Shepherd, Frazier Not Enough For Hu

David Teel

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Princeton Shepherd ignored the pressure, Tim Frazier the pain. But their poise and grit weren't enough to save Hampton University's football team Saturday.

With the MEAC championship and an automatic Division I-AA playoff bid at stake, the Pirates gave away too many points in a 38-28 loss at 14th-ranked North Carolina A&T.

Frazier and Shepherd, a fifth-year quarterback and his heir apparent, brought Hampton to the brink of a remarkable comeback, but a failed fourth-and-1 and a receiver's stumble leave the Pirates (6-4, 5-2 MEAC) on a three-game losing streak entering next week's finale against Savannah State.

"It's so hard right now," Frazier said. "Five years."

Five years and no conference title. Five years and no playoffs. Worse for Frazier, he stood on the sidelines throughout the first three quarters nursing the right shoulder he injured two weeks ago against Florida A&M.

Enter Shepherd, a sophomore who did not play last season. He distinguished himself in relief of Frazier last week at Bethune-Cookman and did so again Saturday. One problem: Hampton trailed 14-0 before Shepherd stepped on the field.

The Aggies (10-1, 6-0) scored on their opening possession and added a second touchdown when Terrance Patrick muffed the ensuing kickoff and Stephen Rogers returned the ball 19 yards.

"I didn't really feel any pressure, even when we were down 14-0," Shepherd said. "I knew it wasn't going to be a problem."

Indeed, by halftime Shepherd had the Pirates, once down 24-7, within 24-21. He took a naked bootleg 13 yards around right end for Hampton's first touchdown and threw scoring passes of 50 yards to Dereck Faulkner and 4 yards to Joseph Wilson, the latter with four seconds remaining in the second quarter.

Get used to it, Hampton fans. Shepherd stands 6-foot-5, runs well and possesses a big-time arm. But like all young quarterbacks, he's prone to mistakes.

On consecutive third-quarter drives, Shepherd lost a fumble and threw an interception. On the pick, he absorbed a nasty shot from linebacker Chamar Milton that numbed his right shoulder.

Enter Frazier, who hadn't practiced during the week and had the "luxury" of taking over with the Pirates pinned on their 8-yard line and trailing 31-21. His first two passes fell incomplete, forcing a punt. But A&T's return team had 12 men on the field, and Frazier took immediate advantage of the penalty, throwing a 45-yard touchdown pass -- on the fly -- to Jerome Mathis with 12:10 remaining.

Down 31-28, Hampton had three chances to tie or take the lead. On the first, A&T stuffed Alonzo Coleman on fourth-and-1 from the Aggies' 27. On the second, Frazier threw three incompletions. On the third, the Pirates drove to the Aggies' 26, and Frazier lofted a pass toward Marcus Rush in the end zone.

"Everybody (on defense) was in the box," Hampton coach Joe Taylor said. "It was a good call. All (Rush) has to do is run, stop, catch the ball, and the game's over."

"It really came down to that one play right there," Frazier said. "I thought it was a good pass."

Frazier has thrown many a good pass at Hampton, and now he passes the quarterback job to Shepherd.

"He's a tremendous athlete," Frazier said. "The only thing I ask of him is to strengthen his drive to become an all-around quarterback. He can run it and throw it, but that's an all-around athlete. An all-around quarterback plays through the pain and makes sure the other 10 players are in the right position. That comes from film study and meeting with coaches."

Shepherd hears the challenge.

"I just have to correct my mistakes, my mechanics, become a student of the game like Tim Frazier," he said, "because Tim has it all. He knows it top-to-bottom. I want to get his knowledge of the game."

A little bit of knowledge added to Shepherd's natural skills? Next time it may be Hampton celebrating a championship.

- David Teel can be reached at 247-4636 or by e-mail at dteel@dailypress.com